Adjustable seat



:June 15, 1943.- v

Filed April '28. 1941 N. E. WAHLBERG ADJUSTABLE SEAT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR. A/Z-S 6761K WAhZBERG' f 4 ATTQRNEY.

Patented June 15, 1943 'Nils Erik Wahlberg,

Nash-Kelvinator Corporation, Kenosha,

Kenosha, Wis., asslgnor to Wls.,

a corporation of Maryland Application April 28, 1941, Serial No 390,663

3 Claims.

This invention relates to means for adjusting the angular position of aseat and has particular reference to means for tiltingthe front seat ofan automobile.

It is an object of this inventionto provide mechanism for adjusting anautomobile seat relative to the controls of the automobile toaccommodate persons of different size stature by tilting the seat.

It is another object of this invention to provide seat adjustingmechanism which will change the position of the occupant in theautomobile without" moving the seat along the floor of the automobile.

It isanother object of this invention to provide seat adjustingmechanism which may be operated by the occupants of the, seat withoutmoving from the seat.

Figure 8 represents a sectional view taken along a .plane indicated bythe line 8-8 in Fig ure 5 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

In the past it has been the practice to provide front'seats inautomobiles which are adjustableby sliding the seat longitudinally ofthe automobile to accommodate persons of different size stature. Theseseats have been adjustably arranged by mounting the seat on rollersoperating in suitable tracks secured to the floor of the automobile andby providing locking means to hold the seat in any one of several It isanother object of this invention to pro- 1 vide seat adjusting mechanismwhich permits the position of the seat to be changed and which will notslide forward and crush the occupant of the seat in case the automobileis suddenly stopped as in the caseof a collision.

It is another object of this invention to provide seat adjustingmechanism which may be inexpensively manufactured and installed in anautomobile.

Other objects and advantages of this inventicn will be apparent from aconsideration of the following description and claimsand the attacheddrawings, of which there are two sheets, and in which- Figure 1represents a side elevation, partially broken away, of an automobileseat with the adjusting mechanism in lowered position; g

Figure 2 represents a side elevation of the seat shown in Figure 1 withthe adjusting mechanism shown in raised position; 1

Figure 3 represents a sectional view taken along a plane indicated bythe line 3-8 in Fig,- ure 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 4 represents a sectional view taken along a plane indicated bythe line 4-1-4 in Figure 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 5 represents a side elevational view, partially broken away,showing a modified type of adjusting mechanism in lowered position;

Figure 6 represents a side elevational view showing the seat in Figure 5n raised position;

Figure 7 represents a sectional view taken along a plane indicated bythe. line l--'I in Figure 5 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

and

of an automobile seat and longitudinal positions. This type of seat issubject to the disadvantage that the locking means may becomeaccidentally unlatched, allowing the seat to move along the track whensuch movement is not desired. This is particularly true in the case, ofsudden stops or collisions and results in the occupant of the seat beingforced against the instrument panel and steering wheel by the weight ofthe relatively heavy seat.

This invention provides means for pivoting.

the forward edge of the seat to a fixed point on the floor of theautomobile and raising or lowering the back edge of the seat by means of,a cam plate bearing on a fixed point secured to the floor of theautomobile. By use of the fixed pivot in the front of the seat, it isassured that the seat occupant against the forward part of theautomobile and will not slide backwardly making it difficult to reachthe controls of the automobile.

The preferred form of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 through 4shows a seat generally indicated at In mounted upon the floor l2 of anautomobile by means of a forward pivoted means generally indicated at Hand an adjustable cam mechanism generally indicated at It positioned atthe rear edge of the seat. The floor I! may be rigidlysecured t0 theside rail iii of the automobile (see Figure 3) in any suitable fashion.The-seat Ill may be construct- I ed in any desired manner and is shownin the drawings to be built upon a tubular frame 20 bent up as at 22 toform a support for the back 24 of the seat.

The forward support It consists of a strut 26 attached at its upper endto the framework 20 of the seat I0 and pivoted about a pin 28 atits'lower end. The pin 28 is supported between the flanges of agenerally channel shaped bracket 30, the web of which is secured as bywelding to the floor I! at 32.

The adjusting mechanism I6 for. raising and lowering the back edge ofthe seat"! consists will not slide forwardly and crush the of a channelshaped bracket 34, the web of which is attached to the framework 22 asat 36 with the flanges thereof extending downwardly. The flanges serveto support the ends of a pivot pin 36 .on which is mounted a cam plate46, ratchet wheel 42 and. a forwardly extending lever 44. The ratchetwheel 42 and cam plate 46 are secured together as by welding at 46 so asto rotate in unison. It is immaterlal'whether the cam plate 46, ratchetwheel 42 and pin 36 rotate together in the bracket 34 or whether the camplate and wheel rotate on the pin. The lever -44 is free to rotaterelative to the pin 36 and is provided with a slot 46 (see Figure 4) sothat itmay be moved transversely of the pin 36 along the axis of thelever. formed on the forward end of the lever 44. The length 'of thelever is such that the handle 46 may be conveniently reached by theoccupantof the seat. 7

The pin 36 is provided with a shoulder 66, which rests against the outerside of the bracket 34, and is retained on the inner side of the bracket'34 by a washer 62 and a cotter pin 64. The outer end of the pin 36 isformed into an annular groove-66 whichv receives the hooked end of acoil spring 66. The forward end of the spring 66 is hooked through anaperture 66 formed in the lever 44 forwardly of the bracket 34 andexerts a full on the lever 44 to maintain the lever in its rearmostposition with the pin 36 positioned at the forward end of the slot 46.

The lever 44 is provided with a pin 62 which A handle portion 46 is.

varying distances from the floor I2. The notches 66 form dwell areas onthe edge of the cam plate 46 which engage the roller 66 to hold the seatIII in any desired position. The edges of the notches are, however,rounded off so that-the plate may be easily rotated. over the roller bymovement of 'the lever 46 to select a new position of the cam. It willbe understood that the structure just described with the-exception ofthe lever 44 and ratchet wheel 46 is duplicated on the opposite end ofthe seat so that both ends of the seat will be raised simultaneously.The

cam plates 46 .on each end of the seat are rigidly connected by a'hollowtube I4 to assure that the cam plates willoperate together. The lever.44 is preferably, but not necessarily, mounted at the end of the seatIII which is to be occupied by the driver of the automobile.

- In the modified form of the invention illus- 6 trated in Figures 5through 8, the seat I IIl'with its supporting framework I26 is supportedat the forward edge ofthe seat by a-strut I26 similar to the strut 26shown in the preferred form of the invention. The strut I26 ispivotallysupported bythe pin I26 carried by. the bracket I36. As in the firstform of the invention, the bracket I36 is securely fastened to the floorI2 at I32.

The rear edge of the seat I I 0 is supported by a'cam plate I46, thelower edge of which bears projects from the lever 44 between the slot 46and aperture 66. The pin 62 is arranged to engage any one of severalnotches 64 formed in the periphery'of the ratchet wheel 42. It shouldthus be apparent that by lifting up on the lever 44 with the lever drawnto its rearmost position by the spring 66, the pin 62 will engage one ofthe notches 64 and rotate the ratchet wheel about the pivot pin 36. Theratchet wheel 46 being welded to the cam plate 40, the cam will also berotated about the pivot pin 36. By draw- "ing forwardly on the lever 44against the tension of the spring 66, the pin 62 may be withdrawn fromthe notch in the rachet wheel in which it is engaged and the lever againrotated about the pin 36 without effecting the ratchet wheel or camplate. The: lever may then be released to allow the spring 66 to drawthe lever and pin 62 into engagement with another of the notches 64 inthe ratchet wheel 46 to further rotate the ratchet wheel and cam plate.Thus it is unnecessary to swing the lever 44 through as great an angleof rotation as the desired angular rotation of the cam plate. Thedesired rotation of the ratchet wheel 46 and cam plate 46 may beeflected by repeated movement of the lever 44 as just described. Itshould also be apparent that the lever 44 may be used to rotate the camplate either forwardly or backwardly.

The .cam plate 46 is provided with a cam sur face within which a seriesof notches 66 are formed. The notches 66 are arranged to ride on aroller 66 pivotally supported by a pin III carried between the arms of aU-shaped bracket I2. The bracket 12 is secured asby welding to the floorI2 just over the side rail I6. Thus rotation of the cam plate 46 willcause successive notches 66 of the cam plate to come in contact with,and rest upon, the roller 66. The notches 66 are positioned at varyingdistances from the pivot pin 36 so that the cam plate funcupon and issupported by the u-shaped bracket I66 welded or otherwise suitablysecured to the floor I2. The cam plate I46 is rigidly attachedas bywelding to a tubular member I14 which extends transversely across theautomobile to a similar cam plate on the other end of the seat. Thetubular member I I4 extends through and is rotatably'supported at eachend of the seat in the flanges of a channel shaped bracket I34, the webof which is secured to the underside of theframe member I20, In thismodified form of I the invention; the bracket I34 is shown to be securedto the frame by means of bolts I36 passed through the frame and the webof the bracket (see Figures 5 and 6). A spacer sleeve I3! is positionedaround the tube I14 between the cam plates I46 and the inner edges ofthe brackets I34 to locate the tube transversely with respect to theseat I6 and brackets.

A ratchet wheel I42 is rigidly secured to one end of the tubular memberI14 as by welding at I46. The center of the ratchet wheel I42 may bestamped to provide a dished portion I46 which projects into the end ofthe tubular member I14 to center the ratchet wheel on the tube. Ashouldered pin I36 has its inner end threaded and secured in a tappedhole in.the center of the ratchet wheel and may be secured in place bymeans of a lock nut I39. The pin I36 serves as a pivot for the lever I44which is slotted as at I46, the'pin being passed through the slot. Thelever I44 is retained on the pin I36 by a cup shaped member I62 securedagainst a shoulder on the outer end of the pin by the nut I64 threadedon the outer end of the pin. The lever I44 carries a pin-I62 whichextends toward the inner side of the lever and is engageable with any ofthe notches I64 formed in the ratchet wheel I 42,

tions to support the rear edge of the seat at 76 The lever I44 isprovided with a rubber covered, hollow handle portion I49 at its forwardend through whichextends a release rod I 6I provided with a padded tipI63." The release rod I6 I extends backwardly alongthe lever I44 and isjournaled in a guide I66 carried by the lever I44. The rear end of therelease rod I6I is provided tween the guide I56 and a washer and cotterpin at I60.

The spring I58 tends to force the release rod -II forwardly relative tothe lever I but since the release rod is anchored by its hooked end I51,the lever I66 is forced to the rear so that the lever is normallypositioned with the pin I38 in the forward end of theslot I48. Bygrasping the handle portion use and placing a thumb over the tip I53,the operator may easily draw the lever I forwardly relative to therelease rod ISA and the pin I38 to disengage the pin I62 from thenotches I64 in the ratchet wheel I42. Thus the lever I may be located inany position without effecting the position of the ratchet wheel M2 andthe cam plate Hit. By allowing the lever IM to be drawn backwardly bythe spring use, the pin I62 may be engaged with the ratchet wheel sothat rotation of the lever I44 will rotate the ratchet wheel and thetubular member I'M. Since the cam plate I60 is carried by the tubularmember I'll, rotation of the lever will cause the cam plate to rotateand assume a different position on the bracket I38.

The cam surface of the plate MI! is arranged to engage the bracket I68at varying distances from the pin I38 and thus raise or lower the rearedge of the seat with respect to the floor I2. It will be noted that theedge of the cam plate I40 is smooth rather than notched as in the'firstform of the invention. While the notches are desirable, they are notstrictly necessary since the friction between the edge of the cam plateand the bracket is sufllcient to retain the cam plate in'position. The

regular edge of the cam plate I60 also allows a greater variety ofpositions of the cam plate and the seat. Attention is called to the factthat the bracket its on which the cam plate IIII rests ispositionedalong the are generated by the pivot pin I38 as it swings about thefront pivot I 2'.

Thus the weight carried by the cam I48 is applied along a line throughthe pin I38 and the bracket I88 so that there is no force tending torotate the cam out of its adjusted position.

In operation, the modified form of the invention is similar to theoperation of the first form of the invention in that the cam plate maybe rotated to any one of several positions by movement of the lever Iand the seat will be adjusted accordingly. The lever I is engageablewith the ratchet wheel in a plurality of positions so that the ratchetwheel may be rotated through a of the automobile. The adjustment of theseat thus allows both .persons of long and short stature to occupy theseat and reach the controls of the. automobile conveniently. Tilting theseat also relieves the monotony of sitting in one position for a longtime as on long drives.

While I have described my invention in some detail, I intend thisdescription tobe an example only and not as a limitation of myinvention, to which I make the following claims:

1. In combination with a base, a seat having a pivotal support on saidbase on a line along one edge of said seat, a pair of brackets carriedby said scat at the opposite edge thereof from said pivatal support,pins carried by said brackets, cam

' plates supported by said pins, said cam plates considerable angle byseveral short angular movetained by tilting the seat rather than slidingthe seat. with the seat tipped backwardly, the occupant of the seat willfind his shoulders and arms moved backwardly from the steering wheel andhis feet moved backwardly i'romthe foot pedals having notched edges, abar extending between said cam plates and rigidly secured thereto, aratchet wheel secured to one of said cam plates and concentric with saidpin, a lever pivotally supported by said pin and defining a slot throughwhich said pin extends, another pin carried by said lever and engageablewith said ratchet wheel, spring means urging said lever and said otherpin into engagement with said ratchet wheel, and rollers mounted on saidbase arranged to engage the notched edges of said cam plates in aplurality of positions.

2. In combination with a base, a seat having a pivotal support on saidbase along one edge of said seat, brackets carried by said seat at theopposite edge thereof from said pivotal support, a transverse barjoumaled in said brackets, cam plates secured to said bar and engageablein a plurality of positions along said cam plates with fixed points onsaid base, a ratchet wheel secured to one end of said bar and having apin extending from the center thereof, a lever having a slot in one endpositioned over said pin, a second pin carried by said lever andengageable with said ratchet wheel, and spring means urging said leverand pin into engagement with said ratchet wheel, the distance betweensaid pivotal support and said bar being equal to the distance betweensaid fixed points and said pivotal support.

3. In combination with a base, a seat having a pivotal support on saidbase along one edge of supported in said brackets,'cam plates secured tosaid bar and arranged to engage portions of said base in a plurality ofpositions, a ratchet wheel secured to one end of said bar and having apin extending from the center thereof, a lever defining a slot in oneend thereof, said lever being supported with said pin in said slot, aretaining member secured to the end of said pin and retaining said leverbetween itself and said ratchet wheel, a second pin carried by saidlever and engageable with said ratchet wheel, a release bar slideablysupported relative to said lever and anchored to said retaining member,a spring carried by said release bar and engaging a portion of saidlever to urge said lever to engage said ratchet wheel, and a handleportion for said lever arranged adjacent to the end of said release bar.

NILS ERIK WAHLBERG.

